Arsenal hero Martin Keown makes Alex Scott transfer claim | Football

Arsenal legend Martin Keown says he expects Alex Scott’s valuation to soar after the midfielder shone on his full debut for England at the weekend.

Scott has rapidly established himself as one of the most sought-after midfielders in the English game since swapping Bristol City for Bournemouth in 2023.

In that time, the Guernsey-born 23-year-old has gone from strength to strength with the Cherries and he was perhaps unfortunate to miss out on a place in Thomas Tuchel’s World Cup squad in the summer.

However, a strong start to the new season saw Scott receive a call-up for Three Lions last month and the Bournemouth star went on to make his debut as a second-half substitute in the side’s Nations League victory over the Czech Republic in Prague.

He was then given the nod from the start in England’s rampant 7-0 thrashing of Croatia on Saturday, producing an outstanding performance at the heart of Tuchel’s engine room alongside Elliot Anderson.

Bad news followed England’s win, though, as it was confirmed that Scott could be sidelined for up to eight weeks due to a quadriceps injury, which has reportedly left Bournemouth ‘unhappy’ and ‘frustrated’.

It’s believed Scott had felt discomfort in his thigh prior to the match and questions have been asked of Tuchel’s decision to select the former Bristol City man in his starting XI.

When asked if Scott should have pulled out of the squad, ex-Arsenal and England defender Keown told talkSPORT: ‘It’s always very difficult.

‘You look at players in different stages of their career and Alex Scott is someone that hadn’t started a game until that point and he would have been thinking it was an amazing opportunity.

‘I’d just thrown in as well that injury made me a better player so there are levels or injuries.

‘I thought it was one of the finest games I’ve seen him play. Maybe the injury helped in that a little bit… he wasn’t trying to play the Steven Gerrard pass, he kept it quite simple, he made really good decisions on the ball.

‘But clearly he then jeopardises it when you go back to the club situation.

‘He might never have got an opportunity to play for England again so it was a dilemma for him and I understand that.’

Though Bournemouth have been left angered by England’s handling of Scott’s injury, Keown is confident the midfielder’s display against Croatia would have seen his asking price shoot up.

Chelsea are currently leading the race for Scott, with Arsenal and Liverpool also believed to be expressing a strong interest in the central midfielder.

Asked how Bournemouth would have reacted to Scott’s injury setback, Keown replied: ‘When he plays for England, doesn’t that put the transfer fee up? Doesn’t that put his value up?

‘There are all of these things… everybody at Bournemouth wants him to play for England but they don’t want him to come back injured.

‘So he has to make that decision and I wasn’t good at that as a player, I kept on getting injured playing for England.’

Keown is excited by the level of competition within Tuchel’s squad and believes the battle for minutes in midfield will only raise the level of the likes of Declan Rice, Anderson and Scott.

‘It means other players can go in and you can rely on their performance,’ he explained.

‘We’ve got competition for places and if you’re not in the squad then you know that possession is nine-tenths of the law when you’re playing in an England team with this manager: “You turn up to my get-togethers, you perform in the games and you’ll be here next time.”

‘It’s a special situation for Declan that has been allowed for him. He’s stepped out to rest him because he’s played more games than any other player pretty well in Europe over the last two or three seasons.

‘I’m pretty another player will step out in November and somebody else maybe gets a rest. We can afford to do that in this Nations League competition.’

Rice did not feature in either of England’s Nations League matches after withdrawing from Tuchel’s party due to concerns over load management.

A decision was made between England and Arsenal that a prolonged break would be beneficial for Rice, who was forced to deal with a neural issue affecting his lower back and hamstring at the World Cup.

‘He went into the World Cup with a neural issue,’ Keown said on Rice’s fitness woes.

‘Players are never very far away from an injury and you never know when their moment is coming.

‘Doesn’t Rice come back stronger now in November for the next set of international games? He’s rested, he comes back and he’s stronger.’

England resume their Nations League campaign at home to the Czech Republic on Tuesday night.

For more stories like this, check our sport page.

Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

MORE: Harry Redknapp urges Thomas Tuchel to call up Arsenal star to England squad

MORE: ‘Big opportunity’ – Man Utd backed to sign Elliot Anderson after Man City guilty verdict

MORE: Gary Lineker issues warning to Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice over England place